Dawn- An age of Darkness
Chapter 79 - I’m Not Going To Be Eaten, Right? Right!?

"How are we supposed to make a hole big enough to get out? And what are we going to do about the water?" I asked.

I actually hadn't thought about it before. I mean, I was too excited about making a hole that I forgot about I could do anything other than that.

"Just focus on the hole, I'll take care of the water." The old man reassured me.

I nodded. There really wasn't much to do. We found a way out and we were about to seize it. No hard feelings serpent.

I slashed the flesh wall as hard as I could. With every slash, the walls shook. How the hell is the serpent still motionless? Is he even sleeping or just waiting for us to get out of here only to squash us?

Even after all the slashing serpent didn't move. My mind was full of doubts but I had to move on. With every slice, we were one step closer to freedom. The old man's glance was still on the sword in my hands though. This guy is too obvious. But, I guess I can't blame him, now can I?

He was using magic to suppress the water, and it amazed me. It was more or less like a wind barrier. That old man was no joke. After making an adequate size mark, I kicked the flesh off the bones. If I were the serpent I'd definitely feel that one. The bones were still intact, but there was enough space to slip through, barely. Small spews of water came through the wind barrier. The other side was completely submerged.

"Well, it's now or never." I sighed.

"If you're having second thoughts, then how about giving me-"

"NO thank you."

The old man laughed and grabbed my hand. We slipped past the bones. I was not a fan of holding his hands though.

It was tight and we almost got stuck. But in the end we made it out with just blood covering our bodies. And then more problems surfaced, or more like submerged, if you know what I mean.

In just one second I felt the weight of the ocean. My body was almost about to implode. Holy hist! I couldn't even swear.

We were outside and a bubble of air surrounded us. It was the same rancid air. So that smell was the air, after all! But I breathed hard and didn't give a damn about the odor. The pressure vanished.

"I thought I was about to die." I was literally holding on the old man's torso as we swam up. We were very deep inside the ocean, but strangely the pressure was not unbearable to me: at least not anymore. If the bubble formed a second later I'd probably be crushed by now.

The old man was looking up, while me down. Honestly, I was prepared to see the crimson red eyes but I most definitely wasn't prepared to see the sheer size of the monster. My last memory of it was very, very large. But I might have forgotten to add another 'very' to the equation. It was massive! The serpent was- at the least- ten times bigger than the one I saw at the top of the mountain (the leafy one). And that one was no joke either.

It was staring straight at me. There was darkness creeping about, but I could see the blood floating around and its deep crimson eyes. Oh! He's pissed.

"Old man, if I were you, I'd hurry up."

"Trust me son, I'd already be sitting pretty at the top if I weren't carrying yar ass." Now that was just rude. Did he forget what I went through to obtain the damn sword he sought after all his life for (not that I wanted to)? In any case we were in some damn trouble.

"ARGHHH!!!" A massive unbearable roar haunted the ocean floor. It was too damn loud. Even holding down my ears with both of my hands wasn't enough. But moments later I realized that I had let go off the old man and was currently in the process of embracing the welcoming sea water down there. Wow, how dumb can you get, Daarc?

Luckily the old man didn't forget about the sword, so he was holding me by my left arm. He almost ripped it off when he pulled. Did he save too much strength, or was he just trying to kill me?

The serpent moved around in rapid motion. Half of its body was on the bottom floor while the rest of it floated. Considering we were in the middle of the ocean, that was really something.

It couldn't have been daytime as the ocean was too dark or it could have been just that the ocean was too dark to begin with. Either way, luck was not something we possessed.

Meanwhile, we were quite far away from the surface but the old man was tired. He was continuously creating air and maintaining it too. If we kept up speed for at least ten more minutes, then we might have been able to reach the top. But we didn't have the ten minutes.

The serpent was roaring in anger and finally came for us. But I could hear something within that roar. "HOW DARE YOU STEAL FROM ME AGAIN!!!"

"Did you hear that?" I said.

"Yeah, that damn snake's mad. Better start paddling kid, it's gonna be a bumpy ride!"

"I meant, did you hear a voice," I said. I most certainly heard one.

"Yeah. I sure did. That damn snake says he wants to rip us apart!"

We were basically shouting but words weren't getting through.

I couldn't believe the guy. He had the balls to be sarcastic and laugh at this situation. Did he have some screws loose or was this situation fun to him or both!? It was definitely both.

In any case we were swimming for our life. But then it was again. "UNFORGIVABLE!!!"

"There it is again," I said.

"He really mad now." The old man was having the time of his life. he really did have a few screws loose.

"You mean he wasn't mad till now?" If we weren't in the ocean, there'd have been a stain on my pants.

He laughed it off.

If I can understand him, maybe we can talk this through. I had the most, stupidest idea ever. And yet somehow, I thought it could work.

The snake was still far away. Maybe he was just warming up. A hunter would first let its prey run around and reap the fun only to crush all the hopes of the prey at the very last moment. Maybe he was aiming for the same.

"Hey! Scale face. We need to talk!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

"Are you outta yar mind!?" The old man shouted. For the first time he seemed a little pale.

"Hey! I'm talking to you!" I didn't stop though. The snake roared and made me almost go deaf but this had to be done. But my approach might have been a little too much. "I know you can hear me!" I didn't stop. I kept going. My heart beat started rising. The old man couldn't decide whether to abandon me or roll with it. I was glad that I had to sword.

The serpent came very close to us. Maybe, my calling out provoked him. Almost when he was about to eat us again, I let out another scream on top of my lungs.

"I CAN UNDERSTAND YOU! CAN YOU UNDERSTAND ME!?" I hadn't screamed that loud in a while. I almost croaked my vocal chords.

The serpent stopped in his tracks. "HUH?"

He stopped. I breathed heavily. The air was horrible but my panting didn't stop.

I was amazed, surprised, thrilled, well no matter what, I was just staggered. What can you expect? My racing heart started to calm down as I stared at the large fangs sticking out from his mouth and the majestic crimson eyes which probably would be my last sight before dying only moments later. But yeah, I had hope.

"HUMAN WHAT DO YOU MEAN? YOU CAN COMPREHEND MY WORDS?" Water bubbles were flying around as he spoke. His mouth didn't move. The words were literally just pouring into my brain.

"Yes."

"What the hell is going on here?" the old man said.

He couldn't believe his eyes. I couldn't blame him, because I couldn't either.

"IT HAS BEEN CENTURIES SINCE ANY MORTAL HAS TRIED TO COMMUNICATE WITH ME." His voice was as magnificent as his looks. It was loud and very stout. Enough to make grown men faint just from hearing it once. However since my life depended on it, I couldn't and didn't have the luxury to faint.

Mortal? So you are some sort of deity? "Are you a god?"

"Are you conversing with him?" the old man whispered. I nodded.

"I AM TRERORTRA THE GOD OF LIGHT, CURSED BY DESTINY." He was very close to us. He had two large multipronged horns on his head. His scales were blue with the hint of aurora like color. I couldn't pick between seriously be scared or bewildered. In the end I chose the former.

Something tells me I shouldn't dive deeper than that.

"IN RESPECT TO YOUR BREVARY AND THAT YOU'VE GIVEN ME SOME AMUSEMENT, I SHALL LET YOU KEEP YOUR LIVES. BUT, RETURN THE SWORD!" There was no hiss, so belittlement. This was genuine kindness. But I wasn't sold.

This sword. I'd been shown mercy. It made sense since he was a god. But what he wanted in exchange was something which I needed. In order to beat someone as strong as the emperor, I at least needed this sword. The sword was very powerful and I could feel it the moment I picked it up.

However, refusing here could mean my death. I was forced to make a gamble. But my life itself was already a gamble so I couldn't really complain.

"I-I cannot do that." I stuttered.

"WHAT!"

"The world is under the threat of the demon emperor. And to beat him I need this sword. Would you lend it to me for one year?" I tried to plead my cases, but it wasn't working. Maybe I should have just accepted his offer? And I was having second thoughts already.

"THIS SWORD WAS MADE FROM MY SOUL. I CANNOT JUST GIVE IT TO YOU. IT IS PART OF ME! IT SEEMS I MIGHT HAVE BEEN TOO MERCIFUL. KILLING YOU IS THE BETTER ACTION!" The water around him foamed and it felt like he was about to destroy us.. And just like that, I invited my ruination.